Self Employed Mortgages

18/01/2023

Freelancer Financials tells us what contractors who want to move this year need to understand about lenders, the economy and the market: https://bit.ly/3w9y9Tr

07/10/2022

How grants may (or may not) affect your ability to get a mortgage:

Top tips if you’re self-employed and want a home loan, but had help from the government during covid.

19/01/2022

*STOP PRESS*
Freelancer Financials has been nominated for Best Specialist Broker/Distributor in the .

You can vote direct, here: https://www.mortgagestrategyawards.co.uk/msa/en/page/industry-vote or visit the post below to learn more!

You know you wanna!!! Many thanks 🤞

Wow! We're chuffed!

Why? We've been nominated for “Best Specialist Broker/Distributor” in the prestigious Mortgage Strategy Awards 2022.

We're asking for a moment of our peers' time to vote for us in a category that we've helped develop more than any other contractor mortgage provider over the last (almost) two decades.

The voting is ONLY open to members of the mortgage and mortgage marketing industry:

» mortgage lenders,
» conveyancers,
» estate agents,
» IT/infrastructure,
» Life/Pension Product Provider,
» compliance,
» underwriters,
» advisors and brokers, etc.

If that’s you (or if it isn’t but you think it ought to be), grand!

It would mean the world to us if you'd lend us your support to help us to a hat-trick of wins during these past turbulent two years (Contracting Awards 2020, Next Intelligence 2021).

Don't know who we are or why you should vote for us?

We've outlined what we've achieved, as well as provided links to cast your vote, in this short blog post: https://www.freelancerfinancials.co.uk/blog/mortgages/mortgage-strategy-awards-2022-vote-now/

We're keeping our fingers crossed, so many thanks in advance!

31/07/2021

Should contractors be worried that lenders have begun asking for SA302s as part of the mortgage application process?

For sole traders, sub-contractors and freelancers, a bank asking for an SA302 to evidence income is commonplace.

But, for contractors who've been used to providing just a copy of their contract for the last decade and a half, this new decision by mortgage lenders to also use SA302s for them can come as a bit of a shock.

While I can understand contractors' surprise, I'm not that surprised that lenders have added this document to their papertrail.

So, does this spell the end for day rates and contract-based underwriting?

Should contractors have to rethink their income strategy (again) if they want to own a home?

Is this move likely to be a permanent thing?

Should contractors expect to provide their SA302 from now on?

So many questions!!

Please, don't panic if you're chewing your nails, deciding whether to share your SA302 with a lender.

It's not as bad as it first sounds, if the lenders we've spoken to are anything to go by.

I hope I've addressed the above questions, and more, below.

Have a great weekend.

Don't panic. There are several reasons, all explained here:

21/08/2020

The Death Knell For Self-Cert Mortgages

The Financial Services Authority (now the FCA) quashed self-cert in 2009. But Google ‘self-cert mortgages’ and you’ll still get pages of websites offering them.

Why neither the FCA nor Google are working to stop this unscrupulous advertising is beyond me. Even back then, self-cert mortgages earned the term “liar loans”, so why persist?

Here's what the official Responsible Lending Guidelines spell out in black and white:

"Creditworthiness assessment (FCA):

"A firm must undertake a reasonable assessment of the creditworthiness of a customer before:

• entering into a regulated credit agreement; or

• significantly increasing the amount of credit provided under a regulated credit agreement; or

• significantly increasing a credit limit for running-account credit under a regulated credit agreement."

You see. Self-cert mortgages today are tantamount to a scam, bait to get you to a website!

Once there, they will offer you something. But it's obvious they won't understand why you needed a self-cert equivalent in the first place!

Here's what you should do, instead: https://www.selfemployedmortgages.com/self-cert-mortgages/

03/07/2020

What Are My Self-Employed Pensions Options As A Freelancer?

Great question on FreelanceUK:

"I have been a freelance animator for around six years, but I have no pension at the moment and this is a big worry for me."

When approached us to find an answer, I was straight onto my inhouse advisers.

I knew they'd have the answer to hand, because you wouldn't believe how many freelancers, sole traders and contractors are in exactly the same boat.

One of the main reasons is that information on the web about self-employed pensions is often confusing to the point of being obtuse!

Our answer, through the link below, is concise and (hopefully) easy to get to grips with.

**Caveat**: the answer is written entirely from our perspective.

We offer the -employed of all denominations a free pension , which we know many other brokers and advisors charge for.

Please bear that in mind when taking away our advice herein, thank you:

Retirement savings expert demystifies the (non-daunting) world of nest eggs for sole traders.

11/06/2020

The Housing Market Has Reopened, Hasn't It, So Why The Long Face?

Only a short time ago, mortgage lenders took a gamble on reintroducing 10% deposit mortgages back into what is, in effect, a new market.

Little over a fortnight after going under starter's orders, that strategy has stalled, and how!

Early this week, lenders took a unanimous step, withdrawing all 90% LTV mortgages from their stables of products, TSB even withdrawing some 85-80% LTV mortgages!

This now represents another huge hurdle for both homebuyers and the housing market alike.

The difference between borrowers saving a 10% deposit and a 15% deposit is a country mile.

This stark reality could see many people, chomping at the bit to buy a home, miss out on home ownership for the foreseeable future.

With lenders putting no timescale on bringing back low deposit mortgages, we can only hope their absence won't be furlong.

Contractors do have options in between, like product transfers (with the same lender) or switching to interest only deals. But their situation must make switching a viable option for them.

We need lenders to whip the government, desperate for this sector to perform to aid recovery, into shape and take over the reins as the finishing post is nothing like in sight:

As lenders clear the field of 10% deposit mortgages, contractors can still use tactics to avoid getting boxed in.

11/10/2018

*Ripping the sticking plaster off the sore: getting for Locum Doctors*

As a doctor, you appreciate the need for specialists in a field. Different problems need different solutions and different skill sets to solve them.

You know that if you broke your ankle playing football, you wouldn't go straight to your GP to get it fixed. You'd call 999 and get an ambulance to A&E who'd point you in the direction of the correct professional to fix your ailment.

It's the same with getting mortgages for self-employed . The way they work is certainly non-preferred (in the eyes of a run of the mill mortgage advisor):

• differing shift patterns lead to irregular income
• ad hoc assignments also highlight risk
• depending on agencies like Staff Bank also may
lead to the wrong conclusion about continued income.

All of these differentials, combined with any manner of differing payment structures, can blur the lines of mortgage affordability.

If you're looking for a mortgage but can't persuade the High Street that you're mortgage-worthy, we have the solution.

You need to talk to a specialist broker who not only understands your income and the way you work but who can also highlight your true affordability to an amenable underwriter. Here's the crutch you need to get you over the line:

Fluctuating hours, differing payment structures, NHS Staff Bank and working to temporary schedules. How do Locum Doctors get a mortgage?

22/07/2018

***Even with payslips, High St lenders reject umbrella contractors***

Everything was going so well. You, like many other contractors, decided contracting was the way to go.

No messy accounts. No worries about automatic payroll. And the threat of IR35 all but extinguished.

There was even the bonus of getting payslips every week when you submitted your timesheet.

And thinking back, wasn't all that hassle you had trying for a the result of not having ?

What now? Go rushing off down the High Street and ramming your last six payslips up the advisor's nose, demanding the keys to your new home?

Hold on, Tiger.

Have you actually had a look at those payslips? Nothing like the ones you had when you were an employee, are they?

What are all those deductions? Why don't they match up to your day rate? Who are all those creditors on your bank statement?

Look. If you're a - no matter what your payment structure - you'll always get a better deal going through a specialist .

They talk the same language as specialist underwriters. They have direct lines to those decision makers, who, you won't in your local branch on a Saturday morning.

Payslips or not, take the smart option. Patience, diligence and a broker on your side. Win, win every time.

Read more:

You've got your first six weeks' payslips as an . You rush to your local branch demanding a mortgage…but still, they reject you! How's that work?